Kimi Antonelli had to settle for a fifth-place finish at the Formula 1 Sao Paulo Grand Prix at Interlagos, despite commanding the early phases of the race. The young Italian driver faced a difficult outing behind the wheel of the Mercedes W17, as a mysterious handling issue derailed his charge for victory just a week after securing his historic world title.
Starting the race as the newly crowned World Champion, Antonelli made a brilliant getaway on the drying track, slipping past Lando Norris into the Senna esses to take control of the race lead. However, as the circuit continued to dry and the crucial switch to slick tyres approached, handling gremlins began to unravel his afternoon.
Over team radio communications, the Mercedes star complained of a weird sensation in the car, suspecting an errant suspension geometry issue. The sudden imbalance caused him to lock his rears and spin under braking for Turn 1, letting his rivals through and ruining his tyre rubber.
"Yeah, I am very disappointed for the race," Antonelli said. "I am very angry, to be fair, but I am going to put all this aside for now, because the team clinched the title. We clinched the title for the team, and they all deserve it."
"I am very proud to be part of this group and this team who have done, and still do, so much for me. I am very happy for them. But talking about the race specifically, yeah, very disappointing because we were on for the win up to that point," he added regarding his performance.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1 after the race, the Italian youngster stressed that the team needs to investigate why the rear stability vanished exclusively in left-handed corners and high-speed sections, noting that the car felt unusually loose without any prior warning.
"We need to check something with the geometry of the car, of the rear, because I had this issue only in left corners. So especially at high speed was when I was feeling it the most," he explained. "And the rear felt very unstable, even coming into the finish line in the left kink, the rear was very loose, which was weird."
Despite the frustration of a missed victory, Mercedes sealed their ninth Constructors' Championship in style. Read our in-depth analysis and catch all the latest paddock updates on Sportrik.com.
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